Tokyo Nights
Life In Tokyo - Neil Stalnaker
Saturday, March 04, 2006
3/04/06 Watching The News...
I watch the news pretty closely everyday. Probably too much. I heard today there have been over 1300 people killed in Iraq in the last week! Over 350 in Baghdad! And then I see these politicians and military analysts sittin' around tables and answering questions about there being a "possible" civil war in Iraq. I heard a "cat" today say (I think it was the senator from Virginia) that it didn't really follow the dictionary definition of a civil war. What planet is this guy livin on? These people think we are that stupid?

Recently, I see so much tension about countries acquiring nuclear technology and today Bush is in India signing a deal to give them technology and assistance to develop their nuclear program. Then he's going to Pakistan tomorrow to try and make them feel comfortable about this deal. Wow! Talking about great timing. We still have people living in tents in Louisiana, Miss. and Alabama. 6 months after Katrina came through.

Heard about a couple of firemen from my hometown area that recently came home after spending a few months in New Orleans trying to help out. They said it's pathetic down there. Said it seems like the USA has forgotten about the victims of Katrina.

I see on the news today that a lot of government funding is going to finish for the Katrina vitctims. But, how much are we continuing to spend in Iraq every month? I don't understand why we don't take care of our homeland.

I was back in my hometown last year and was shocked by the amount of drug use in that little mountain town of West Virginia. Everyone seems scared to say or do anything about it. I was so sad to see the condition of my hometown. Sad and angry. It makes me so angry that people can come into my hometown and screw-up so many young lives.

I used to hear the President (maybe 10-15 years ago) always talking about the "War On Drugs". In the last Presidential election, I didn't hear ANYONE even say the word "drugs". I think they have given up. I love the USA. Even though I'm living in Japan (only to recover from cancer/depression and play trumpet), I love the USA more than ever. But, I'm sick and saddened to see the country drifting so far off course simply because there aren't any strong leaders.

It strikes me in an odd way that we (USA) invade Afghanistan after 911 and since then, the no. 1 producer and distributor of heroin in the world is Afghanistan. They are having record poppy harvests even though the country is crawling with US military.

I get CNN Breaking News Alerts to my cellphone and it justs makes me hurt inside everytime I get one that reports on more young US soldiers being blown-up in Iraq. Over 2000 killed. How many wounded? Hands, feet legs blown off. 10,000...15,000...20,000? They say we are going to stay there until we win. I wonder....how will that look? How will we know that we've won. I'm thinking about all of those families back in those hometowns that are grieving over lost sons and daughters.

The news is so tightly controlled. We never see the real images of war on tv. They would never be able to continue to get support from the general public about these crazy projects if they showed the reality of those situations on the evening news.

Even when I'm playing, what I think is, a horrible gig, I still feel so damn lucky to be a musician. It's just such a beautiful and wonderful thing to make music. Does Bush play an instrument? Cheney? I wonder how many world leaders can get up on the stage and play or sing their ass off? I sometimes hear stories of the leader of North Korea kidnapping Japanese and South Koreans and taking them to North Korea to perform and/or act for him. How sad. Can you imagine?
Apple Store Written at 3/04/2006 01:37:00 AM by neil stalnaker.